Control for automobile lighting systems



April 30, 1935. A. P. PINKLER 1,999,731

CONTROL FOR AUTOMOBILE LlGHTING SYSTEMS Filed Nov. 5. 1952 INVENTOR ARTHUR P P/NK'L ER ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 30, 1935 a I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE" coN'raoL roa AUTOMOBILE uon'rmo SYSTEMS Arthur P. Plnkler, Newark, N. J.

Application November 3, 1932, Serial No. 640,941

The invention relates to automobile lighting associated therewith the emergency lamp l0, systems, and more particularly to the control which may be combined with lamp 9 as a multithereof. filament lamp or be provided as an individual The invention has for an object the provision lamp, as shown. If desired, additional or pilot of an automatic switching arrangement whereby lamps ll, l2 and I3 may be provided and these 3 when any individual heador tail-light fails, an will then be located conveniently to the operator emergency light will automatically be cut into of an automobile, the said lamps II and I2 when circuit as a temporary substitute for the same, energized serving to indicate that failure has The invention has for a further object the prooccurred at a lamp I or 2 resp ctively, d that vision of a single controller switch device to this the emergency lamp provided therefor is ener- 10 end, which device is utilized also for effecting sized- S ly, p Will notify the illumination of the usual parking lamps assoator of the vehicle that the tail-lamp 9 has failed ciated with an automobile, the said lamps servand that its emergency lamp I0 is in operation. ing at the same time as the emergency lights for One sidev of each of the filaments of lights 3,

5 the lights of the head-lamps. 5 andl as well as of the filaments of lights 4, 13

Still another object of the invention resides in 6 a d 8. i rou d as a d the tail-lamp the provision of a switching device of the afore- 9 with its associated emergency lamp I0 is likesaid nature and the provision of circuit connecwise grounded as a While the Pilot lamps are tions whereby the usual succession of lighting r nd d as t T battery r h r operations may be efiected, that is to say, the, source of electrical supply for energizing the in- 20 first switch position will effect energization of dividual lamps a desired-is grounded t 9 so the parking lamps and of the tail-lamp, the secthat if h pp i and p v r f h ond of the low-beam for the head-lamps and tery 8. is connected with any of the u lmd d of the tail-lamp, and the third and final position sides of the light filaments aforesaid, the same of the high-beam for the head-lamps, as well W l be energized nd th c rresponding lamp 5 as' of the tail-lamp. caused to be illuminated.

A further object of the invention resides in the To effect this energization of the desired lamps provision of pilot lamps for indicating which of a in the required sequence, While a the same the head-lamps may have become defective, or time providin f n r a i n f their assothe tail-lamp. ciated emergency lamps when required, the fol- 30 The accompanying drawing illu tr tes dialowing switchlng device and. circuit arrangement grammatically the novel switching arrangement have been devised. A circuit-controller 20, prefand circuit connections embodying my invention erably of the rotary p is p d a a and as applied to the usual lamps of an automoshown, is designed to Operate Clockwise o sucbile lighting system, the three successive posicessively cause energ of the parking lamps tions which the brushes of the control switch may 1 and 3 811d tail-lamp 9, 0f the wfi a nts assume being indicated respectively by dotted 3 and 4 for the head-la p l and 2 a Wel as of lines, dot-and-dash lines, and dash lines. tail-lamp 9, and finally of the high-beam fila- As shown, a pair of head-lamps, such as are ments 5 and 6, together with the tail-lamp 9.

usually provided on opposite sides at the front of To this end, the positive side of battery I8 is 40 an automobile, is represented at I and 2, respecconnected to a three-position segment 2| of the tively, these lamps being preferably of the duplex switching device, the parking lamp 8 to a twofilament type, the respective lights or filaments position segment 22, and the parking lamp 1 to 3 and 4 thereof affording the low-beam illumia two-position segment 23. The low-beam fila- 5 nation and lights or filaments 5 and 6 of the ment 3 and high-beam filament 5 of lamp l are respective lamps the high-beam illumination. connected respectively to the single-position con- There is to be associated with these head-lamps tacts 24 and 25, while the corresponding filaments at the front of the self-propelled vehicle the 4 and 6 of lamp 2 are connected to the single-pousual parking lamps I and 8 which, in some insition contacts 26 and 21.

stances, may be incorporated with the head- An energy-supplying brush 30 designed for 50 lamps as an additional filament. These parking three-position contact with the segment 2| suplamps I and 8 serve as the emergency lights to plies, when engaging such contact, energy'to the be energized in the event of failure of the lights coils of three relays 3t, 32 and 33, respectively, of either of the head-lamps I and 2. and also to the armatures or one side of the re- A tail-lamp 9 is also provided and which has spective relay contacts 34, 35 and 36. The next 55 succeeding brush 3! is connected directly with the ungrounded side of pilot lamp I 2, and the following brush 38 with the ungrounded side of the filament of pilot lamp ll. Two additional brushes 39 and 40 are provided, the former being connected in series with the coil of relay 3| and the latter in series with the coil of relay 32.

By following the circuit connections, it will be observed that when brush 30 is in its first position in contact with segment 2 l, relays 3| and 32 will not beenergized due to the fact that their respective circuits are open at brushes 39 and 49 which do not make any contact in their first positions. The contacts 34 and 35 of the relays therefore remain closed and power is supplied through the leads 4| and 42 therefrom to the corresponding parking lamps 1 and 8.

Relay 33, however, is energized, being included in series with the tail-lamp 9 which is thus also energized. None of the pilot lamps ll, l2 and I3 is energized, as the tail-light 9 is functioning properly and the parking lights I and 8 are not protected.

In the succeeding or second position of the controller, brush 30 still remains in contact with the source of energy through segment 2 l, but both of the brushes 39 and 40 now engage their respective contacts 24 and 26. This closes the circuit, through the respective relays 3i and 32, to the lights 3 and 4 to ground [5, causing the said lights to be energized and at the same time opening the circuit to the parking lamps at the contacts 34 and 35, through the action of the respective relays. The operation of the tail-lamp 9 has not been affected thereby.

At the same time, brushes 3'! and 38 have engaged their respective segments 22 and 23 so that if either of the lights 3 or 4 should fail, the corresponding emergency lamps l or 8 would be energized, as a relay 3| or 32 would thereby become deenergized, and a corresponding contact 34 or 35 closed. This transfers, also, energy to the corresponding pilot lamp I l or l2.

In the next and final position, brush 33 still remains energized through contact with segment 2|, and the brushes 31 and 38 continue on their respective segments 22 and 23. Brushes 39 and 40, however, have left their corresponding contacts 24 and 26 so that the lights 3 and 4 are extinguished, but these brushes now engage contacts 25 and 21 of the high-beam lights 5 and 6 which are thereby energized. Lamp 9 functions as hereinbefore set forth with relay contact 36 open.

Therelay contacts 34 and 35 remain open so long as the lamps 5 and 6 are energized through the controlling brushes 39 and 40, but if their circuits for any reason fail, a corresponding pilot lamp II or 12 will be energized to give notice of such failure and at the same time a corresponding parking or emergency lamp 1 or 8 will be energized through the closing of a relay contact 34 or 35.

in such a manner as to locate the particular point where the failure occurred.

I claim:

1. An automobile lighting system embodying a pair of electric head-lamps and a tail-lamp, the head-lamps each embodying at least two individually operable lights, a pair of parking or emergency lamps associated with the head-lamps, and an emergency lamp associated with the lamp, the one side of each of said lamps being grounded, a source of energy for all of the said lamps and having one side grounded, a relay for each of the two head-lamps and a relay for the tail-lamp, a three-position circuit controller embodying a three-position segment, and two double single-position contacts, together with brushes movable by the controller-one brush adapted for engaging the three-position segment in all of its three positions, and a pair of brushes for engaging successively the single-position contacts of the respective double single-position contacts in the second and third positions of said controller, a lead from the three-position segment-engaging brush to one side of the windings of all of the relays, the said three-position segment being permanently connected to the source of power, leads from the double single-position contacts to the lights of the respective headlamps, leads from the pair of single-position contact-engaging brushes to the windings of the respective head-light relays to complete the energizing circuits of said relays when the said single-position contact-engaging brushes engage either one of the double single-position contacts, leads from the respective head-light emergency lamps to the respective head-light relay contacts for energization of the emergency lamps therethrough, said relay armatures being connected to the common energizing relay lead, a lead from the common energizing relay lead to the taillamp through its relay, and a lead from said common energizing relay lead to the emergency tail-lamp through the tail-lamp relay contact.

2. An automobile lighting system embodying a pair of electric head-lamps and a tail-lamp, the head-lamps each embodying at least two individually operable lights, a pair of parking or emergency lamps associated with the head-lamps, and an emergency lamp associated with the tail-lamp, a pair of pilot lamps adapted for indicating the electrical condition of both of the lights of the respective head-lamps, and a pilot lamp for indicating the electrical condition of the tail-lamp, the one side of each of said lamps being grounded, a source of energy for all of the said lamps and having one side grounded, a relay for each of the two head-lamps and a relay for the tail-lamp, a three-position circuit controller embodying a three-position segment, two two-position segments and two double single-position con cts, together with brushes movableby the co trollerone brush adapted for engaging the three-position segment in all of its three-positions, a pair of brushes for engaging the respective two-position segments in the second and third position of the controller, and a pair of brushes for engaging successively the single-position contacts of the respective double single-position contacts in the second and third positions of said cdntroller, a. lead from the threeposition segment-engaging brush to one side of the windings of all of the relays, the said threeposition segment being permanently connected to the source of power, leads from the twoposition contacts to, the respective emergency75 head-lamps, leads from the double single-position contacts to the lights 0! the respective headlamps, leads from the two-position segmentengaging brushes to the respective head-light pilot lamps, leads Irom'the pair of single-position contact-engaging brushes to the windings of the respective head-light relays to complete the energizing circuits of said relays when the said single-position contact-engaging brushes engage either one 01' the double single-position contacts, leads from the respective head-light emergency lamps to the respective head-light reto the emergency tail-lamp through the tailm lamp relay contact.

ARTHUR P. PINKLER.

lay-contacts for energization of the emergency v 

